County offers safety tips after 'unprecedented' Lake Pleasant deaths

By Philip Haldiman
Mail | Twitter: @PhilipHaldiman

It is gearing up to be a busy season at Lake Pleasant with swaths of people ready to shed their pandemic experiences for summertime fun in the water.

But the season has kicked off with at least four drowning deaths and two other fatalities due to hypothermia before the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

MCSO Det. Rob Marske said the high number of deaths is "unprecedented," and most of those fatalities shared two common denominators — a lack of a life jacket and most were young men.

Because of this, public safety officials are sharing tips with the public in hopes that lake visitors will take precautions and remain safe.

Maricopa County Sheriff's Office hosted a press conference, May 17, to share those tips with the public.

“Young men traditionally think they are better swimmers than they are. If they grew up in Arizona, maybe in the Valley, they’re used to being in a backyard swimming pool where they are close to an edge or swimming 20 feet at a time, but if you are unable to swim the length of an Olympic sized swimming pool without being winded you are not a swimmer. You may know how to swim, but you are not considered in our book, an actual true swimmer. So we are encouraging people to take a swimming class even as an adult,” Det. Marske said. “Know what your ability is before you come out to an open body of water and attempt to swim.”

There are no lifeguards on duty at Lake Pleasant, so officials say it is important for swimmers and boaters to be pro-active regarding their safety.

Children ages 12 and younger are required to wear life jackets according to Arizona law, but officials recommend that all individuals on the water wear life jackets.

Also, there have to be enough personal flotation devices for each person on a boat, according to the Arizona Game and Fish Department website.

Additionally, swimmers should not rely on floaties or inner tubes.

If visitors to the lake do not have a life jacket, Marske recommends they participate in the Life Jacket Loaner Program.

There are 18 life jacket loaner stations throughout Arizona, located at lakes in Maricopa County, including two at Lake Pleasant.

The stations are located near the dock of each lake and will allow boaters to use a life vest from the loaner station and return it at the end of the day.

Marske said the stations not only provide life vests to those who do not have them, it also serves as a reminder for all individuals to put their life vest on.

Additionally, if you see a deputy on patrol at Lake Pleasant, you can ask and one can be loaned to you, he said.

“There is really no excuse to be without a jacket if you are at an Arizona lake,” Marske said.

Boating drunk is always a concern for public safety officials at the lake. The same laws for drunk driving apply to operation of a water craft. Driving while intoxicated won’t affect your driver’s license, but it will affect you financially, Marske said.

“If you take the boat aspect out of it, if you are drinking on the shoreline all day and you decide to use lack of judgment — because we know that alcohol during impairment judgment is the first thing to go — that’s when you might decide to swim out to that buoy that is 100 yards away, that actually you think it’s 100 yards away, but it is actually 200 yards away,” he said. “Add on the environmental exposure with the heat and sun, being out all day long and having some drinks, it can be multiplied. One alcoholic beverage in a normal controlled environment in your living room or at a bar, you can feel the effects (more at the lake) because of the environmental factors.”

Philip Haldiman
Senior News Editor | Peoria
@PhilipHaldiman

phaldiman@iniusa.org

Meet Philip
Haldiman is an award-winning journalist who most recently took first place for investigative reporting in 2023 from Arizona Newspapers Association. He joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2015, covering Sun City West his first year. Since 2016, he has covered the city of Peoria. Prior to coming to INI, he was a reporter with The Arizona Republic for seven years, covering numerous cities throughout the Valley. Before that, he was a freelance writer.

Community: Haldiman spearheads the Peoria Independent Hometown Heroes Awards program, honoring local individuals and businesses that give back to the community. He has hosted local candidate forums over the years and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists. Haldiman also served as a member of the Journalism Program Community Advisory Board at Glendale Community College. Outside journalism, Haldiman served as a member of the city of Peoria Complete Count Committee for the Census, 2019-2020. Lastly, he has served as a member of his HOA governing board since 2021.

Education: Arizona State University with a BA in Journalism and Mass Communications and a BA in Theater. 

Random Fact: Haldiman is a fourth-generation Arizonan as well as wrote and produced an autobiographical comic book about his time spent in Hollywood and his life as a cult film star.

Hobbies: He enjoys hiking Arizona’s mountainous landscapes and is currently working on a play for the stage.